All posts tagged: Democratic Republic of Congo

East DRC city timidly comes back to life under M23 control | World News

East DRC city timidly comes back to life under M23 control | World News

Two bodies lay on a Bukavu road, lynched by a mob accusing them of taking part in the widespread pillaging of the eastern DR Congo city as it fell to pro-Rwandan forces. East DRC city timidly comes back to life under M23 control Following the city’s seizure by the Rwanda-backed M23 Movement, the crackle of bullets gave way to the sound of sirens on Monday as ambulances made their way to treat those wounded in the violence. The capital of the Democratic Republic of Congo’s South Kivu province, now under the M23’s total control, fell with next to no resistance from the fleeing Congolese army. Thousands of people have fled the region to neighbouring Burundi. Many of those who stayed behind were keen to clap the M23 as columns of fighters entered Bukavu on Sunday morning. “You can walk past them and they won’t arrest you or ask you for any identification,” said resident Bonaventure Bene. Bukavu was the latest area to fall into the hands of the M23, which in recent months has seized …

DR Congo: near Goma, displaced people begin long journey home | World News

DR Congo: near Goma, displaced people begin long journey home | World News

Once crowded with white makeshift huts, the huge Kanyaruchinya camp for displaced people on the outskirts of Goma, in war-torn Democratic Republic of Congo, looked eerily empty on Sunday. DR Congo: near Goma, displaced people begin long journey home Since Goma was taken by Rwanda-backed M23 fighters earlier this week, some 100,000 internally displaced people have left the jam-packed hillside where they had set up several years ago. The M23 offensive in the mineral-rich eastern DRC is the latest to scar a region that has seen relentless conflict involving dozens of armed groups kill an estimated six million people over three decades. “Life in the camp is a life of suffering and hunger,” said Christine Bwiza, one of the last people to leave camp Kanyaruchinya, which sits near the Rwandan border. There, residents had cobbled together makeshift huts from sticks and tarpaulin. Hunger was rampant and poor hygiene regularly caused cholera outbreaks. Many had mixed feelings about finally going home. Some said they were relieved, others stressed they had no choice. All worried about their …